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EU funds firm supplying Israel with banned cluster weapons

'The European Union is giving millions of dollars of “research” funding to a company that is helping Israel evade an international ban on cluster weapons.

Israel has specifically chosen the company, Elbit Systems, to supply new artillery cannons because a European manufacturer would restrict Israel from using cluster munitions.

Yet the European Commission, the EU’s executive bureaucracy, is shrugging its shoulders, insisting to The Electronic Intifada that the funding follows ethical guidelines.

The EU says it strongly supports international bans on cluster weapons and landmines. In response to a query from The Electronic Intifada, a European Commission spokesperson hailed the bans as “major diplomatic achievements” that the 28-member bloc wanted to see fully implemented.

But the EU is planning no action to hold Israel or Elbit accountable.'